What tips would you give a new business owner who wants to get their business off on the right foot?

There are many issues that a new business owner must tackle during startup.  These items generally fall into 3 categories.

1. Things that must be taken care of now (either because they are legally required or must be in place before the next item can be handled).
2. Things that need to be taken care of soon, like creating show term marketing plans, creating a unique selling proposition, ideal customer profile and goals
3. Longer term issues like creating operating procedures, having a growth plan, detailed marketing plan, an employee handbook and more are last on the list.

Obviously my startup list is very short and leaves out many items that must be addressed. The focus of this article is not about all the myriad of items and details a new business owner has to tackle. No, this articles purpose is to guide a new business owner in finding help and support that will expedite their businesses growth. That’s right, growing their business and getting help at the same time. We will be killing two birds with one stone.

Why Networking fundamentals are your route to fun and profit.

By Hector Cisneros

If you are like me, you don't like to work real hard and get nothing in return. Yet at the same time, you know instinctively that doing the least amount will yield the smallest reward. I discovered that the phrase "least effort most gained" is actually an oxymoron long ago. However, I also discovered that if I wanted to network smarter not harder, I had to concentrate on doing very specific behaviors that produce the best results. Otherwise, I would find myself doing things right but not doing the right things.